After the church and its ceremony,
After the hubbub that immediately followed,
After the happy toasts and the cheerful testimonials,
After the music had started and the dancing begun,
the bride, still in her wedding dress, in her husband's arms,
went into cardiac arrest on the dance floor.

Later, after the frantic attempts to revive her,
After the paramedics and their diligent CPR efforts,
After the long ambulance ride to the hospital,

After the hurried gurney-borne entrance into the ER,
After the distraught family assembled in the waiting room,
the naked bride, her shorn white gown now beneath her,
was greeted at last by her wedding's unexpected guest.